Politics
How would Robert F. Kennedy Jr. quitting affect the Harris-Trump race?
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to hold a news conference Friday in Phoenix to announce his exit from the presidential race, according to multiple media outlets, which also predicted that the scion of America’s greatest Democratic political dynasty would throw his support behind the Republican nominee, former President Trump.
It’s unclear how Kennedy‘s exit would affect the presidential race. A Pew Research Center poll this month suggested that Vice President Kamala Harris has picked up would-be Kennedy supporters. It appeared that backing came in some measure from women and non-white voters who previously were leaning toward Kennedy.
But Trump allies say the Kennedy endorsement would be a victory. “Fox & Friends” host Brian Kilmeade said Friday morning that the Republican would surely pick up a critical 2 or 3 percentage points with Kennedy’s support. That would be enough, Kilmeade insisted, to swing the campaign back into the GOP’s favor.
Trump is campaigning in Arizona on Friday and posted on social media that he would have a “special guest” at an afternoon rally. On Thursday, Kennedy withdrew from the ballot in Arizona.
Kennedy, a 70-year-old Los Angeles resident, entered the race in April 2023, with a burst of media attention. He showed unusual strength in some early polls for a candidate with no experience in elected office. But his support flagged after Harris emerged last month as the Democrats apparent nominee.
Kennedy’s thoughts about leaving the race became public in recent days, when his vice presidential running mate, Nicole Shanahan, discussed those talks. She said Kennedy might accept a position in a Trump administration, in particular if he thought it could help combat what she called an epidemic of chronic disease.
The transition to Trump stalwart will be greated with skepticism in many circles, given Kennedy’s political DNA and his past description of the Republican as “unhinged” after Trump went on a social media tirade, accusing Kennedy of being a “Democrat plant” and “wasted protest vote”.
“When frightened men take to social media they risk descending into vitriol, which makes them sound unhinged,” Kennedy wrote on X in April. “President Trump’s rant against me is a barely coherent barrage of wild and inaccurate claims that should best be resolved in the American tradition of presidential debate.”
Kennedy’s presumed exit from the race comes 16 months after he stood before the media in Boston, scene of many political triumphs for previous generations of the Kennedy clan, which included his father, the New York senator and attorney general and his uncle, President John F. Kennedy.
The long-time environmental attorney initially ran as a Democrat. But by October 2023, Kennedy said that he would run as an independent, because party nominating rules made it too difficult to compete, particularly against an incumbent like President Biden.
Kennedy said his independent status would allow him to break the grip on power held by a virtual “uniparty” — the Democrats and Republicans — and that he would be in a better position to cut out-of-control government spending, to take on “Big Pharma” and other corporate interest and to invest more in reversing America’s epidemic of chronic illness.
Even after his shift to an independent campaIgn, and as he courted support from smaller political parties, polls showed Kennedy unable to move within reasonable striking distance of his big party rivals.
Kennedy argued that he should be allowed into the June debate between President Biden and Trump, but he could not persuade the other candidates or networks that he had earned a place on the stage.
Kennedy’s campaign also spent abundant time and money trying to qualify him for the ballot in all 50 states. He suffered a setback last week when a New York judge ruled he shouldn’t appear on the ballot because he listed a “sham” address on nominating petitions.
Thought he presented himself as a pragmatic problem solver, not beholden to big interests, Kennedy’s views on some issues — particularly vaccines — were extreme. A particularly problematic example: When he compared Biden’s vaccine policies to the Holocaust. He suggested that Jews, including Anne Frank, had more freedom under the Nazis than Americans living with COVID-19 mandates.
That drew rebukes from many Jewish groups and even a complaint from his wife, actor Cheryl Hines, who called the Frank reference “reprehensible and insensitive.” Kennedy apologized.
Though born into what some viewed as an American political “Camelot,” Kennedy struggled as a young man, particularly with his 14-year addiction to heroin. The candidate sought to use that ordeal to his advantage, saying that his 40 years in recovery made him uniquely qualified to bring new solutions to the nation’s addiction crisis.
But other aspects of his past, including his past relationships with women, became fodder for new criticism.
That included the regurgitation of a 2013 New York Post story, after the tabloid somehow acquired a journal that RFK Jr. allegedly kept in 2001. It included a log of 37 women that he had sex with when he was married to Mary Richardson Kennedy, the Post and other outlets reported.
(Kennedy’s wife had killed herself in the year prior to publication of the story, but she had reportedly found the journal at some point.)
Early last month, reports about the disturbing behavior resurfaced in a Vanity Fair profile, in which a former family babysitter described how Kennedy groped her when she was in her early 20s and taking care of Kennedy’s four children with Mary. Text messages revealed that the candidate apologized to the former babysitter after publication of the article, though he told reporters he recalled nothing about the alleged misconduct.
Then, in August, a New Yorker profile revealed an odd Kennedy prank. As a grown man, the man known – like his father — as Bobby, once retrieved a dead bear cub from a roadside and deposited the corpse in New York’s Central Park. The carcass provoked a mystery that consumed the city a decade ago.
Kennedy faulted both Biden and Trump, as he criss-crossed the country, trying to spark the kind of momentum his father did in the 1968 race for the White House. But he increasingly lashed out at Biden and the Democrats more, particularly infuriated by the challenges they lodged to his ballot petitions.
As recently as Wednesday, the candidate sent messages like a man still in the fray. One came via a video posted on social media, when he invoked Abraham Lincoln and said “we must realign ourselves with the founding spirit of our nation.”
On Thursday, Shanahan again nodded to the duo’s possible exit from the race. She seemed to relish the way some of her friends pleaded with her not to support Trump.
“My old Dem buddies have been flooding me with frantic calls, texts, and emails,” she wrote on the social media platform X. ”The message was clear: they’re terrified of the idea of our movement joining forces with Donald Trump. When I point out what the Democratic Party and their super PACs have done to sabotage our campaign, their response is always, ‘but Trump is worse.’ Here’s an idea: stop suing us. Let us debate.”
She then suggested, without providing evidence, that the Democrats somehow were “rigging the media and the polls” — the sort of accusations Trump has made many times in the past.
Trump gave no clear indication Thursday of how he might partner with Kennedy. Following Harris’ address to the Democratic convention, the former president went on Fox News for a phone interview.
“I’ve had a great relationship with him over the years. I respect him. He respects me,” Trump told Fox anchor Brett Baier. “I have no idea if he’s going to endorse me.”
He said the Friday appearance of both men in Arizona was a coincidence. “But it’s possible we will be meeting tomorrow,” Trump said.
FIRST ON FOX: A dozen Republican White House lawyers who served in the administrations of then-Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush are endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris in her race against GOP nominee former President Donald Trump.
“We endorse Kamala Harris and support her election as President because we believe that returning former President Trump to office would threaten American democracy and undermine the rule of law in our country,” the lawyers wrote in a letter that the signatories shared first with Fox News Digital.
The letter was released on Friday, the day after Harris delivered her nomination acceptance speech in the culminating moment of the Democratic National Convention, which was held in Chicago.
HARRIS TAKES AIM AT TRUMP AS SHE VOWS ‘TO BE A PRESIDENT FOR ALL AMERICANS’
Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris takes the stage on Day 4 of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on August 22, 2024. (REUTERS/Mike Segar)
The signatories added that “we urge all patriotic Republicans, former Republicans, conservative and center-right citizens, and independent voters to place love of country above party and ideology and join us in supporting Kamala Harris.”
The list includes Michael Luttig, the prominent right-of-center legal scholar and retired federal appeals court judge who previously served as assistant counsel to the president in the Reagan White House. Luttig made headlines at the start of the week by endorsing Harris as the Democrats’ convention kicked off.
WATCH: TRUMP JOINS FOX NEWS FOLLOWING HARRIS ADDRESS
The letter notes, “Donald Trump’s own Vice President and multiple members of his Administration and White House Staff at the most senior levels – as well as former Republican nominees for President and Vice President – have already declined to endorse his reelection.”
Those signing the letter pointed to what they called “the profound risks presented by his [Trump’s] potential return to public office. Indeed, Trump’s own Attorney General and National Security Adviser have said unequivocally that Donald Trump is unfit for office, dangerous, and detached from reality.”
Former President and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump points after speaking about national security during a campaign rally in Asheboro, North Carolina, August 21, 2024. (Photo by PETER ZAY/AFP via Getty Images)
And pointing to the then-president’s attempts to reverse the results of his 2020 election loss to President Biden, the Republican lawyers argued that “Trump’s attempt to prevent the peaceful transfer of power after losing the election proved beyond any reasonable doubt his willingness to place his personal interests above the law and values of our constitutional democracy.”
“We cannot go along with other former Republican officials who have condemned Trump with these devastating judgments but are still not willing to vote for Harris,” they added. “We believe this election presents a binary choice, and Trump is utterly disqualified.”
And they charged that Trump “was guilty of grave wrongdoing to our Constitution, democracy, and rule of law, and who remains unfit, dangerous, and detached from reality.”
Trump’s numerous indictments in four different legal cases dating back to the spring fueled support for him among Republicans as he fended off over a dozen challengers for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination.
His fundraising skyrocketed this spring after he was found guilty of all 34 felony counts in the first criminal trial of a former or current president in the nation’s history.
While Trump easily captured the Republican nomination as he cruised through the GOP’s primaries and caucuses, his final rival – former ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley – continued to win up to 20% of the vote in Republican contests long after she dropped out of the race.
President Biden’s campaign – which transformed into the Harris campaign after the president’s blockbuster announcement last month that he was ending his re-election bid – has made efforts for months to court Republican voters disaffected with Trump.
The Harris campaign during the four-day convention in Chicago this week showcased Republicans who are supporting the vice president.
Among them were former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan and former Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois.
Former Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois speaks at the Democratic National Convention, on Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago, Illinois. (Paul Steinhauser – Fox News )
Trump has dramatically transformed the Republican Party since he first won the GOP nomination and the White House in 2016, turning it from a conservative-dominated party to one where the populist wing of MAGA (Make America Great Again) supporters and followers dominate.
The list of signatories to the letter, besides Luttig, includes (in alphabetical order) John B. Bellinger III, Senior Associate Counsel to the President and Legal Adviser to the NSC under George W. Bush, Phillip D. Brady, Deputy Counsel to the President under Reagan, Benedict S. Cohen, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan, Peter D. Keisler, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan, and Robert M. Kruger, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan.
Also included are John M. Mitnick, Associate Counsel to the President and Deputy Counsel, White House Homeland Security Council under George W. Bush, Alan Charles Raul, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan and General Counsel, OMB under Reagan and George H.W. Bush, Nicholas Rostow, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and Legal Adviser to the NSC under Reagan and George H.W. Bush, Peter J. Rusthoven, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan, David B. Waller, Senior Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan, and Wendell L. Willkie II, Associate Counsel to the President under Reagan.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
Thousands of Democrats — delegates, party members, politicians and celebrities — filled Chicago’s United Center this week to nominate Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota for president and vice president. Here are some of the notable people spotted in the arena.
Thursday
Ms. Harris accepted her party’s nomination, speaking about her middle-class roots and calling for unity with a “new way forward.” Before she spoke, members of her family took turns at the lectern, including her sister Maya, niece Meena and step-daughter Ella. Several celebrities were spotted in the crowd.
Doug Emhoff, the second gentleman
Maya Harris, Tony West and Meena Harris
Vice President Harris’s grand-niece Gov. Tim Walz and his children, Gus and Hope
Padma Lakshmi, television personality
Sheryl Lee Ralph, actor and singer
Wednesday
The convention’s third night featured speeches by several up-and-coming party stars, former President Bill Clinton and a surprise appearance by Oprah Winfrey. After several guests highlighted Mr. Walz’s average-Joe persona and background as a football coach, he officially accepted the Democrats’ vice-presidential nomination.
Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota helped to introduce Mr. Walz before he took the stage, emphasizing his Midwestern roots.
Mr. Walz’s wife and children: Gwen, Gus and Hope Senators Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota
Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts
Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona and former Rep. Gabby Giffords of Arizona
Julian Castro, former HUD secretary, and Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas
Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota
Tuesday
Several Democratic governors, including J.B. Pritzker from the convention’s host state of Illinois, were seated with their delegations during a ceremonial roll call. A playlist of songs and a performance by the rapper Lil Jon soundtracked the night.
Before speeches by the former first lady Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obama capped the evening, Doug Emhoff, the second gentleman, spoke about how Ms. Harris took on the role of “Momala” to his children, Cole and Ella.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois
Mr. Emhoff’s daughter, Ella, and parents, Barbara and Michael
Cole, Mr. Emhoff’s son, and his wife
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan
Gov. Wes Moore of Maryland
Gov. Tony Evers of Wisconsin
Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky
Rep. Maxine Waters of California
Monday
The convention’s first night featured remarks by Hillary Clinton and a torch-passing speech by President Biden. “America, I gave my best to you,” he said, reciting a phrase from the song “American Anthem” by Gene Scheer. Several members of Mr. Biden’s family were among the crowd, and audience members held up signs reading, “Thank you Joe.”
Nancy Pelosi, a key figure in pushing for Mr. Biden to exit the race, held up a “We [Heart] Joe” sign.
Jill Biden, the first lady
President Biden’s grandchildren
Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California
Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania
Gov. Gavin Newsom of California Senator Chuck Schumer of New York
Rep. Lucy McBath of Georgia
FIRST ON FOX: Former President Trump is being preemptively attacked by Democrats over a speculated endorsement from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. following his expected presidential campaign suspension.
On Friday morning, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) unveiled four billboards targeting Trump over the potentially looming endorsement.
“Weird as hell,” the billboards say, featuring photos of Trump, his running mate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, and Kennedy.
BIDEN-HARRIS HHS SECRETARY SIDESTEPS BACKING ANY LIMIT ON LATE-TERM ABORTION
Trump and RFK Jr. are being targeted together by the DNC. (Getty Images)
The signs debuted in battleground state Arizona, where Trump has a scheduled rally with a “special guest,” and in Chicago, Illinois, where the Democratic National Convention wrapped on Thursday.
Kennedy’s presidential campaign notably announced an address to the nation on Friday, also in Arizona.
One of the Chicago billboards will be at the city’s Trump International Hotel, with the goal of people viewing it as they depart after the convention.
DEM LAWMAKERS’ VOTING RECORDS WITH BIDEN-HARRIS IN SPOTLIGHT AHEAD OF TIGHT RACES
The DNC unveiled a billboard tying Trump and Vance to RFK Jr. (Democratic National Committee)
The paid advertising campaign is the DNC’s first featuring Kennedy since President Biden’s suspension of his re-election bid.
The Trump and Kennedy campaigns did not provide comment to Fox News Digital in time for publication.
“MAGA Republicans elevated RFK Jr.’s sham candidacy as a tool to mislead voters and hurt Democrats, and RFK Jr.’s exit is an admission their gambit failed,” wrote Ramsey Reid, who oversees the DNC’s effort against third-party candidates, in a memo obtained first by Fox News Digital.
PROGRESSIVE LEADER URGES HARRIS TO WAIT ON GOVERNMENT HEALTH CARE PUSH
Kennedy is speculated to be ending his campaign. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Reid revealed that the party’s data on Kennedy showed their efforts paying off and his favorability dropping throughout the campaign.
“As voters have learned about RFK Jr.’s unsavory and reckless past, ties to MAGA donors, and MAGA-lite positions on abortion bans and January 6th pardons, his support has dwindled to make him a near-negligible factor,” Reid wrote.
“The little support that remains is soft, split across ideologies, and disproportionately among lower propensity voters,” he continued. “With no meaningful base of support and sky-high negatives among Democrats, RFK Jr.’s threat to VP Harris was neutralized.”
NEWSOM DODGES QUESTION ON HARRIS PRICE CONTROLS: ‘SHE HASN’T PUT OUT THE DETAILS’
Trump will hold a rally in Arizona with a special guest. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
Further, Reid claimed, if Trump accepted Kennedy’s endorsement, he would “own all of RFK Jr.’s baggage.” On top of that, “he would presumably have to appoint him and that baggage to a major position in his government.”
Kennedy’s campaign has not confirmed the reports that he plans to drop out or that he will subsequently endorse Trump.
In a Fox News Poll earlier this month, Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in a head-to-head match-up, 50% to 49%. But with the inclusion of third-party candidates, including Kennedy, Trump and Harris were tied at 45% each nationally. Kennedy received 6% in the poll.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
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